Monday, July 31, 2017

Palms will be close August 17 - 30


If the churches were savvy they'd set up a free breakfast for allus sinners with nowhere to go on August 20 and 27.

Anyway, y'all are on your own. Andreas and 29 Palms Inn in Twentynine Palms are both good for breakfast. Maybe we'll see you there.

Two arrested in Wonder Valley

TWO ARRESTED AFTER WONDER VALLEY STORAGE CONTAINER BURGLARY
By Z107.7 News, on July 28th, 2017
Two Wonder Valley men were arrested Wednesday morning, accused of burglarizing a storage container. According to a Sheriff’s report, witnesses interrupted two men, later identified as Randell Vessells, 48, and Justyn Holsclaw, 20, who had broken a lock on the storage container in the 4000 block of Steeg Road in Wonder Valley. The suspects then ran off. Deputies located Vessells north of the residence. Holsclaw ran from the deputies into the desert and was captured after a short foot pursuit. Holsclaw had a red duffle bag with him that contained a cutting saw and various tools. Deputies determined that Vessells was a parolee at large. Randell Vessells was arrested for investigation of burglary and on a parole violation, booked into the Morongo Basin Jail, with his bail set at $25,000. Justyn Holsclaw was arrested on suspicion of attempted burglary, booked into the Morongo Basin Jail, with his bail set at $25,000.

No August community meeting

I just passed an exam to qualify for a 4-day class to become an HIV test counselor. I've been volunteering with Desert AIDS Project and Morongo Basin Healthcare District. DAP is sponsoring my training. This is part of a longer range plan to advocate for harm reduction programs in our communities.

For this reason I will not have time to prepare for an August community meeting. Our next Wonder Valley Community Meeting will be Saturday, September 9, 2017.

Teresa

Friday, July 21, 2017

Wonder Valley Dream Catcher


Joshua Tree artist Bruce Carlton snapped and titled this  picture in Wonder Valley recently, found outside an unoccupied cabin.

Saturday, July 15, 2017

Crime Stats June 2017

The figures for 2015 and 2016 were supplied by the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. The figures for 2017 were gleaned from media reports so these numbers have not been confirmed by the Sheriff's Department.


An increase in numbers does not mean there has been an increase in crime. An increase may be due to increased public awareness and willingness to report crime.

Remember, if you call the Sheriff's Department, always ask for an incident number.

EMERGENCY NUMBERS:


In case of an emergency: dial 911
Sheriff’s Department non-emergency: 760-956-5001

Code Enforcement: (909) 884-4056 or (760) 995-8140

Animal Control:  (800) 472-5609

REPORT ORV ABUSE

San Bernardino Sheriff's Department (always call first)
private land trespass - (760) 366-4175

BLM (Bureau of Land Management)
public land trespass - (888) 233-6518

San Bernardino Code Enforcement
(909) 884-4056 or (760) 995-8140

CRISIS WALK IN CENTER: Open 24/7 - (760) 365-6558
7293 Dumosa Avenue, Suite 2, YV 92284
No appointment necessary

SUICIDE HOTLINE: (800) 273-8255

VETERANS CRISIS LINE: 1-800-273-8255, press 1

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 24-HOUR CRISIS LINE
Crisis counseling, information, referrals and access to the immediate safety of emergency domestic violence shelter.
(760) 366-9663 x1

Friday, July 14, 2017

Food Distribution, Monday, July 17, 10:30 a.m., WVCC

The Community Action Project (CAP) 
U.S.D.A. Commodities Food Distribution will be:

Monday, July 17, 2017, 10:30 a.m.


Wonder Valley Community Center
80526-1/2 Amboy Road

Wonder Valley, CA 92277

Low income Wonder Valley residents self-certify on site.

PICKING UP FOR A FRIEND OR FAMILY MEMBER?If you want to pick up food for a Wonder Valley resident living at a different address, download and print the form below, have that person fill it out and sign it, and bring it with you to the food distribution. If it's filled out correctly you'll be allowed to take a box of food to them.
http://www.cdss.ca.gov/cdssweb/entres/forms/English/EFA15.pdf

The form above also contains the Emergency Food Assistance Program 2016 Guidelines for qualifying monthly and annual household income for household size. Low-income Wonder Valley residents self-certify on site.

Thursday, July 13, 2017

Desert Trail, July 13, 2017

The USDA Food Distribution is scheduled to take place at our Wonder Valley Community Center, 80526 ½ Amboy Road near Blower Road, on Monday, July 17 from 10:30 to noon. However, before coming down, please call  Community Center Coordinator Ric Figueroa at 760-367-9880 to make sure it is not being postponed.  There are some paperwork issues that should be ironed out by then.

Since the birthstone for July is the ruby and the flower is the larkspur, we send out Rainbows-of-Rubies-and-Larkspurs to Jan Peek who celebrates her special day this week. Happy birthday, Jan!

Karen’s Commentary:
First, coupons went out this week to Army, Navy and Air Force bases in Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom.

Second, here is important information about Adult Protective Services. If you see or suspect elder or dependent adult abuse, don’t ignore it! Call the toll-free 24-hour hotline at 1-877-565-2020. Calls are confidential and callers can remain anonymous. Calls that report an allegation of danger or presence of abuse will be promptly investigated. Services are provided at no cost and without regard to income. Types of abuse include physical, sexual, isolation, financial, neglect, abandonment and mental suffering. Help that’s available includes emergency response, counseling, care planning, bus or gasoline vouchers, emergency shelter, in-home protection and referral to other community services. Abuse should be everyone’s concern.



Darlene’s Commentary:
Bearded cryptantha, aka "sock lice"
Boy, howdy! Old Mother Nature must be kind of cranky these days. First she tries to drown us with that wonderful steady downpour earlier this year, but it did come with a promise of a spectacular wildflower blooms. Well, she kept to her word – amazing bunches of glorious wildflowers appeared! In fact, we also had a superior bloom of those small cactus-like plants appropriately known as “sock-lice,” and tiny, tiny fine-barbed sticker bushes that make you itch like crazy. Those things are not fun, Mother Nature! Now, don’t get me wrong, I still love Mother Nature, but why did she now decide to turn Wonder Valley into a giant oven with no controls?? I just hope that this coming winter will be somewhat normal. Right.

Godwin Christian Fellowship holds regular services at 10:30 every Sunday morning. On the third Sunday of each month, there is a luncheon following the service honoring everyone having a birthday that month. For further information, call Pastor Max Rossi at 831-234-6848.

Handy Hint:
Brown bags with holes punched in them are perfect storage places for alliums – a fancy name for onions, shallots and garlic – for up to three months.

Thought for Today:
Slightly more than 69 percent of firefighters in the United States are volunteers.

Until next time . . . remember to take time to enjoy the WONDERs all around us.


Wonder Valley sunrise, TSS.

Tuesday, July 11, 2017

WV Community Center not closing, never was closing

Last night at the MAC meeting, a Wonder Valley resident told me he came to speak out against the closing of the Wonder Valley Community Center. I assured him that the WVCC was NOT closing. In fact, I told him, I couldn’t conceive of any way that it could be shut down.

The landowners of Wonder Valley pay an assessment every year with their property tax and that money goes to San Bernardino County Special Districts to maintain and manage the Wonder Valley Community Center and park.

The resident was worried because the Salvation Army Food Distribution had not happened during May and June.

Programs, like the Salvation Army and Community Action Project food distributions contract with the County of San Bernardino to have their programs at various community centers, both public and private. Contract changes and updates were required so there was a break in service as contracts were renegotiated. It’s unfortunate that this happened and it’s been difficult to fix blame as there are many players involved and many moving parts.

The upshot is that the state of these programs is unrelated to whether or not the WVCC remains open. More of a concern to me is whether or not the WVCC is USED. I would like to see more people there on a regular basis. I would like to see the WVCC humming. That is up to no one other else but us, as well.

The long time lead of the food programs, Star Javier, has played a pivotal role in making sure the food distribution programs continue with as little downtime as possible. Next time you see Star, give her a big high five and a big thank you for all her selfless work. She’s a true Wonder Valley (s)hero!

Third District San Bernardino County Supervisor James Ramos attended the MAC meeting last night in Joshua Tree. It was the first time he had done so since I have been on the MAC. I was happy to hear the words “Wonder Valley” come out of his mouth, not once, but TWICE during his presentation. He referred to the work he did getting our fire station funded ($1.5 million) and the work he and Mark Lundquist (his aide) have done in the last weeks to ensure that the food distribution programs go forward as regularly scheduled. Ramos seemed committed to not only seeing that they continue on time, but that structural issues - such as maintenance on trucks, and getting refrigerated trucks online - are addressed.

Ramos even came out to Fire Station 45 yesterday and went on a ride along, going on a medical call with our paramedics. He saw firsthand the value of our Fire Station 45 to our community.

When I was first seated on the MAC two and half years ago I was shocked at the negative things people said to me about Wonder Valley. I made a point of giving detailed reports of Wonder Valley at each meeting and there is evidence that people have come to value and appreciate our little community if for nothing other than the squeaking that I give that wheel every chance I get.

I’ve had a really nasty and love-lived flu and had to cancel the last two community meetings. There will be a WV Community Meeting on Saturday, August 12, even IF the creek does rise. See you then.